Nearly two-thirds of coral reefs in the
Caribbean are threatened by human
activities, according to a new report by
scientists at the World Resources Institute
(WRI). Additionally, coral reefs are a vital
component of coastal defense against the
ravages of storms and hurricanes like
Frances and Ivan.

"Many reefs are subject to multiple threats,
such as from over-fishing and runoff of
pollution and sediments from the land. We
estimate that two-thirds of the region's
reefs are threatened from these direct
human pressures," said Lauretta Burke,
lead author of Reefs at Risk in the
Caribbean. "The very important overarching
threats of coral bleaching from warming
oceans, coral disease from new pathogens,
and perhaps increased hurricane frequency
are additional threats that put even more
reefs at risk."

Burke and her co-author, Jon Maidens,
launched the report and its companion Web
site at http://reefsatrisk.wri.org/ on
September 29, 2004 in Montego Bay, Jamaica
during a series of high-level UN meetings
attended primarily by government officials
and scientists from the Caribbean. The full
80-page report is also available at the Web
site.

"Reefs take a battering from hurricanes,
which is a natural occurrence, but the threat
increases if they become more frequent.
When reefs get knocked down, the cost to
people is dramatic," Maidens said. "If coral
reefs are lost, replacing such natural
protection by artificial means would cost
coastal communities millions of dollars."

The report utilizes WRI's Reefs at Risk
Threat Index, which uses geographic
information system (GIS) data to determine
reef degradation from four primary
sources. This includes coastal
developments such as sewage discharge,
water-based sediment and pollution coming
from fertilizers from farms, marine-based
pollution such as those coming from
discharges from cruise ships, and over-
fishing.

"Human activity has undermined the health
and vitality of reefs. The coral reefs I
observed in the 1940s are totally different
today. Sadly, none has changed for the
better," wrote noted filmmaker Jean-Michel
Cousteau in the preface to Reefs at Risk in
the Caribbean.

The analysis of coral reefs throughout the
entire Caribbean,an estimated area of
more than 10,000 square miles (26,000 sq
kilometers), used several other factors
within its measurement index. For instance,
when hurricanes arrive, Florida and the
Caribbean nations are protected by reefs
because of their ability to dissipate wave
and storm energy. The authors used their
index to calculate that shoreline protection
from natural Caribbean reefs saves
between US$700 million and US$2.2 billion
per year.

"Hurricanes have been important in shaping
the Caribbean. Reefs can recover from
these storms, but not necessarily, and
they're less likely to recover with all the
added stress from other sources," Maidens
said. "This has economic implications."

For instance, continuing degradation of the
region's coral reefs could reduce net annual
revenues from dive tourism which
provided an estimated US$2.1 billion in 2000
by as much as US$300 million per year by
2015.

The authors estimate that Caribbean coral
reefs provide goods and services with an
annual net economic value in 2000 between
US$3.1 billion and US$4.6 billion from
fisheries, dive tourism, and shoreline
protection services. Additionally, the report
also focuses on ways all consumers can
preserve reefs.

"When tourists are diving and kicking,
they're not paying attention to the reefs. It's
important for them to voice their concerns
when they see something wrong being
done by others," Burke said. "Properly
managed marine protected areas offer
some protection for coral reefs, but at
present, governments are not investing
enough in these areas. Our analysis points
to the high value of these resources, and
what will be lost if they are not better
protected."

Another innovative feature of the report is
its inclusion of the first regionally
consistent, detailed mapping of these
threats. These will help local, national and
international organizations in setting
priorities for conservation and natural-
resource management.

"Actions to reverse the threats to
Caribbean coral reefs can often be
undertaken at very low cost, with very high
financial and societal returns, even in the
short term," Maidens added.

WRI first used the Reefs at Risk Threat Index
to determine reef degradation throughout
the world in 1998. Five years later, it was
used to measure the threats to the coral
reefs of Southeast Asia, the center of global
marine diversity. This is the first time it has
been applied to the Caribbean or used in a
region that is heavily dependent on tourism
for its revenue.

"We rated 88 percent of Southeast Asia's
reefs as threatened. We only rate 64 percent
of the Caribbean tropical coral reefs as
threatened. However, the threat of disease,
which is not included in the model, is
greater in the Caribbean," Burke said.